By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)
Is Superman a false god or a prophet? Just who is he and what is his purpose on Earth? These are the questions raised in Zack Snyder’s reimagining of the DC Universe. In fact, this comics company has this “New 52” in place for sometime. and this director has been following along a similar line of themes for DC’s theatrical presentation and reimagining of some iconic heroes. In Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, not everyone approves of this new mighty man of steel poised to look like Atlas holding the weight of the world upon his shoulders. In the voice-over, one individual asks if the biggest demon might be someone who fell from the sky — is this an allusion to Lucifer, the Morningstar? We’re not talking about the devil here, but that’s the feeling some folks might get. Literary analysts might wonder if this person is playing on the idiom, “Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t.”
Given another frame where there are soldiers bowing to Superman, some may wonder just what kind of hold he has upon the fair people of Metropolis. The city has recovered from the events of Man of Steel, but not everyone approves. And is it a vault that he’s entering into?
By the time Bruce Wayne aka Batman emerges, this version of the caped crusader is going to be nothing like former iterations seen on-screen. He’s staring at an old costume and is perhaps wondering if its time to put it on again. The dialogue is sharp as a new narrator speaks about how dark feelings can turn a good man to bad. There’s this fever and rage that festers, and that’s essentially Batman as visioned by Frank Miller. Viewers of this trailer get to see this version don some mechanical threads that gives him a wicked glowing eye look. Wayne is going to need it if he’s going to fight Superman.
Perhaps the biggest question here is just how far gone has Batman become? Is he there to do what’s right for the people of Earth? Does he even know about Superman’s weakness to Kryptonite? When this film’s subtitle is known as Dawn of Justice, that means other types of superheroes could potentitally emerge to side with either the caped crusader or man of steel in hopes to find freedom from being ostracized. The villain is not so clearly defined yet. As any follower of DC’s films will know, Lex Luthor is waiting in the wings.
